The present invention relates to data center analysis, and more specifically, to data center physical infrastructure threshold analysis.
A data center is a facility used for housing computer and communications equipment. A business may maintain this equipment for the purpose of handling the data necessary for its operations. The computers housed in a data center include servers and storage units. The servers are typically mounted on server racks that are arranged in single rows forming corridors between them. Each server rack has an associated rack density, or number of servers that can be stored on the rack. The racks are supported by a raised floor, which is comprised of a gridded metal framework or understructure of adjustable-height legs that provide support for individual floor panels. Cables, wiring, electrical supplies, and various cooling components can be run underneath the floor panels of the raised floor.
The raised floor is considered an element of the physical infrastructure of a data center. Other physical infrastructure elements of a data center include layout efficiency, utility power, uninterruptible power supplies (UPS), generators, chillers, computer room air conditioners (CRAC), and power density. Layout efficiency refers to the percentage of total data center space that can be utilized based on how well the data center is organized. A one hundred percent layout efficiency denotes maximum space utilization in the data center.
Utility power is the electrical power delivered to the data center. The servers and storage units, among other electrical devices, utilize this power. In the event of a power outage, UPS systems can keep servers running on battery power for a period of time, thereby allowing for a clean shutdown without loss of data. Also in the event of a power outage, generators, which are devices that convert mechanical energy into electrical energy, can serve to provide electrical power to the servers.
Chillers and CRACs are elements of a data center's cooling infrastructure. A chiller produces chilled water via a refrigeration process for delivery to a computer room air handler (CRAH). Both CRAHs and CRACs move air throughout the data center over a fan system that delivers cool air to the servers and returns exhaust air from the data center. By definition, a CRAC is a refrigerant-based air conditioner installed under the raised floor and connected to outside condensing units. Power density refers to the maximum heat density that can be handled by data center cooling technology, such as chillers and CRACs, and can be measured in watts per square foot or watts per square meter.
The raised floor, UPS, utility power, generator, chiller, and CRAC physical infrastructure elements each have a threshold capacity, also referred to as a nameplate value. Less than one hundred percent of the threshold capacity of these elements may be usable. For example, less than one hundred percent of the threshold capacity of the raised floor may be usable, as corridors may need to be present between server racks.